9/11 Hearings

"I knew of no intelligence during the 6-plus months leading up to Sept. 11 that indicated terrorists would hijack commercial airliners, use them as missiles to fly into the Pentagon or the World Trade Center towers." - Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, pictured being sworn in before giving testimony to the federal panel reviewing the Sept. 11 attacks, March 23, 2004

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"Another attack on our people will be attempted. We can't know where or when, or by what technique. That reality drives those of us in government to ask the tough questions: When and how might that attack be attempted? And what will we need to have done today and every day before the attack to prepare for it and, if possible, prevent it?" -- Rumsfeld, pictured March 23, 2004

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"The world of Sept. 10 is past. We've entered a new security environment, arguably the most dangerous the world has known. And if we're to continue to live as free people we cannot go back to thinking as the way the world thought on Sept. 10." -- Rumsfeld, pictured at right with Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz, March 23, 2004

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"On the USS Cole (attack in Yemen), we were obviously prepared to respond, but we did not have definitive evidence that it really was committed by Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda. That evidence came after we were out of office. But had we had definitive evidence, I can assure you that we were prepared to act militarily." - Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, pictured testifying March 23, 2004

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"I am satisfied that we did what we could given the intelligence that we had and pre-9/11, if I might say. We have to keep being reminded of that, because there were whole questions ... that we overreacted, not the other way around." Albright, pictured at right with Ambassador Thomas Pickering, March 23, 2004

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"I keep hearing the excuse we didn't have actionable intelligence. Well, what the hell does that say to al Qaeda? Basically, they knew - beginning in 1993 it seems to me - that there was going to be limited, if any, use of military and that they were relatively free to do whatever they wanted." - Former Sen. Bob Kerrey, pictured at left with fellow commission member Slade Gorton, March 23, 2004

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"Anything we might have done against al Qaeda during this period, against Osama bin Laden, may or may not have any influence on these people who were already in the country, already had their instructions, had already burrowed in and were getting ready to commit the crimes that we saw on 9/11." - Secretary of State Colin Powell, pictured testifying before the September 11 Commission, March 23, 2004

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"Al Qaeda has tentacles in many different parts of the world. We've been very successful. We've eliminated a significant portion of the senior leadership that we knew about. This does not eliminate the entire organization, and it is not the only organization that means us ill." - Powell, pictured at right with Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage, March 23, 2004

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"Even now after Sept. 11, it is far from clear that our society truly appreciates the gravity of the threat we face or is yet willing to do what is necessary to counter it. After all, it is commonly noted, there have been no attacks since 9/11. This is a dangerous delusion. The enemy is not only coming, he has been here. He is already amongst us." - Former Defense Secretary William Cohen, March 23, 2004

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"I have worked for two different administrations, two different political parties...This administration was working hard before Sept. 11 to devise a comprehensive framework to deal with al Qaeda based on the best knowledge that we in the intelligence community could provide, and during this time, the intelligence community did not stand still." "I have worked for two different administrations, two different political parties...This administration was working hard before Sept. 11 to devise a comprehensive framework to deal with al Qaeda based on the best knowledge that we in the intelligence community could provide, and during this time, the intelligence community did not stand still." -- CIA Director George Tenet, pictured at the Sept. 11 hearings, March 24, 2004

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"As a country, you must be relentless on offense, but you must have a defense that links visa measures, border security, infrastructure protection and domestic warnings in a way that increases security, closes gaps and serves a society that demands high level of both safety and freedom..." - Tenet, pictured with CIA Deputy Director John McLaughlin at left, March 24, 2004

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"...We collectively did not close those gaps rapidly or fully enough before Sept. 11. We have learned and are doing better in an integrated environment that allows us to respond faster and more comprehensively than three years ago. And much more work needs to be done..." -- Tenet, pictured listening during the hearings, March 24, 2004

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"...Mr. Chairman, the war ahead is going to be complicated and long. You need an intelligence community, you need a Homeland Security Department, and we need stamina to continue in this fight because it's going to go on for many years." -- Tenet, pictured testifying March 24, 2004

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"This plot was well on its way. Decapitating one person, even bin Laden in this context, I do not believe we would have stopped this plot." -- Tenet, answering the question whether catching bin Laden in 2001 would have prevented the Sept. 11 attacks, March 24, 2004. He's pictured with CIA Deputy Director John McLaughlin at left

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"Let me say, first of all, there could not have been any doubt about what President Clinton's intent was after he fired 60 Tomahawk cruise missiles at bin Laden in August '98. I assure you they were not delivering an arrest warrant. The intent was to kill bin Laden." -- Sandy Berger, national security adviser to President Clinton, pictured testifying March 24, 2004

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"Your government failed you, those entrusted with protecting you failed you and I failed you. We tried hard, but that doesn't matter because we failed. And for that failure, I would ask - once all the facts are out - for your understanding and for your forgiveness." - Richard Clarke, former counterterrorism adviser to the past three U.S. presidents, in testimony directed toward victims' relatives, March 24, 2004

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"George Tenet and I tried very hard to create a sense of urgency by seeing to it that intelligence reports on the al Qaeda threat were frequently given to the president [Bush] and other high-level officials. And there was a process under way to address al Qaeda. But although I continued to say it was an urgent problem, I don't think it was ever treated that way." -- Clarke, pictured testifying March 24, 2004

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"Let me talk about partisanship here...I'm not working for the Kerry campaign. Last time I had to declare my party loyalty, it was to vote in the Virginia primary for president of the United States in the year 2000. And I asked for a Republican ballot." -- Clarke, pictured facing the federal panel with his back to the camera, March 24, 2004

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"In hindsight, if anything might have helped stop 9-11, it would have been better information about threats inside the United States, something made difficult by structural and legal impediments that prevented the collection and sharing of information by our law enforcement and intelligence agencies." - National security adviser Condoleezza Rice, pictured, in testimony April 8, 2004

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"After the September 11th attacks, our nation faced hard choices. We could fight a narrow war against al-Qaida and the Taliban or we could fight a broad war against a global menace. We could seek a narrow victory or we could work for a lasting peace and a better world. President Bush chose the bolder course." - Rice, pictured, in testimony April 8, 2004